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Frequently asked questions

  • Q.  How are vegetables grown at Gen V?
    A. 

    We grow all our vegetables in greenhouses year-round with two agricultural methods that use a lot less water than field grown crops: hydroponic growing and greenhouse organic growing. These methods let us be green while we grow our greens!


    Learn more about the main characteristics of these two growing methods here.

  • Q.  How do greenhouse vegetables stack up to those grown in fields?
    A. 

    Very well! Greenhouse vegetables have the exact same freshness, crunchy texture and level of nutrients as their field-grown cousins. Where greenhouse veggies have the flavour edge is their maturity at harvest and their proximity to the table. In other words, it's not so much how a vegetable is grown, but how far it has to travel before you eat it that can make all the difference. So look for local producers like us!

  • Q.  Should I wash your produce before eating?
    A. 

    That's entirely up to you!

    Here’s a little more info to help you decide: all our peppers and cucumbers are organic, all our lettuce varieties are hydroponic, and we don’t systematically use pesticides. Also, our vegetables are grown in greenhouses, which are closed, controlled environments. That means much fewer contaminants than with produce grown outside. Lastly, we never ‘prewash’ because the process requires three rinses with chlorinated water, and we don’t want to do that to our veggies. So there you have it! The choice to wash (or not) is yours.

  • Q.  Why do you use plastic packaging?
    A. 

    Great question. Our goal is to keep our produce fresher for longer to reduce food waste, which is a growing problem in North America. With that in mind, we worked with eco-design experts to test a variety of packaging options. Plastic emerged as the most performant material for maintaining freshness. It extends produce shelf life by creating a protective barrier that also conserves humidity (much like a greenhouse, in fact!) And while we’re delighted to take a stand against wilted vegetables, we’re more persuaded by our ability to cut back on food waste, here and in your home.

    The dome used to package our lettuce is made of recycled and recyclable material, and is largely recycled in North America. By reducing the package thickness as much as possible and using the least amount of raw material to produce it, we’re minimizing the plastic we do use.

    But plastic simply isn’t a long-term solution. We remain committed to exploring more eco-friendly alternatives that let us meet our food waste goals. Learn more about plastic packaging here.